New Cisco WAN Access Performance Management System Reduces
Cost and Time to Market
Service Providers and Enterprise Customers Gain from
Improved Network Manageability
SAN JOSE, Calif., December 3, 2002 - Cisco Systems, Inc. today announced a new WAN Access Performance Management System designed to allow service providers to achieve substantial savings in platform
investments, staffing, IT development costs, and operational support costs, while achieving significant time-to-market advantages. Similarly, enterprise customers will now benefit from improved network availability and reduced WAN support costs, while being able to manage their entire network, including remote international locations.
Cisco teamed with Visual Networks, a member of the Cisco
Service Provider Solutions Ecosystem Partner Program, to develop this robust integrated solution, which combines Visual Networks' WAN access management solution with the Cisco suite of intelligent Internet OSS products. This solution addresses the challenges of developing and supporting robust managed network services by enabling service providers to easily and cost-effectively deploy Visual Networks' advanced WAN management functions to new ATM and Frame Relay access ports/
routers and to their installed base of managed Cisco routers through a simple Cisco IOS. Software upgrade.
Verizon, one of the world's leading providers of communications services, is currently in the final stages of testing the WAN Access Performance Management System and plans to make it commercially available to enterprise customers - Fortune 1000, government and education entities - in the U.S. during the first quarter of 2003. The WAN Access Performance Management System will provide, Verizon network operations staff with better ATM
network performance visibility. In addition, Verizon customers will have the information they need to more effectively plan their networks and evaluate the level of service they receive.
Cherokee Health Systems, a non-profit health organization that manages network operations for its remote facilities located throughout Tennessee, has started to deploy the Cisco solution in its high-speed network. "With this solution, we will have visibility into our T1 ATM network for the very first time," said Craig Davis, director of information technology at Cherokee Health Systems. "We believe this will allow us to make better and more informed decisions for managing network utilization with our current and future applications."
This integrated performance management solution is built on the Cisco CNS Programmable Network interface that manages network devices through Cisco CNS intelligent engines and agents in Cisco IOS Software. These agents help network devices become intelligent peers in network provisioning and monitoring. Data from these agents is collected via a Cisco CNS gateway and is forwarded to the Cisco WAN Access Performance Management System, which is based on Visual Networks' patented technology. The combined solution enables real-time and historical troubleshooting on access line, access channel and PVC conditions, combined with burst analysis, service-level agreement (SLA) validation reporting and performance monitoring for the customer.
"Cisco is focused on helping our business partners and customers use the intelligence in Cisco Internet OSS and Cisco IOS Software. With this new solution, our service provider customers will receive the comprehensive functionality they need to maintain the highest-quality
managed services for their enterprise customers, while continuing to build out their businesses worldwide," said Anson Chen, vice president and general manager,
Network Management and Services Technology Group, Cisco Systems. "By integrating Visual Networks' WAN performance management software, we significantly extend the value of managed
router services based on Cisco technology."
"Cisco is a world-class networking leader and we are pleased to be working closely with them to deliver these solutions to customers, " stated Steve Hindman, executive vice president of sales and marketing, Visual Networks. "Our service provider customer base can now propagate management visibility across large populations of managed routers, while our enterprise customers now have a cost-effective way to extend management visibility across their entire WAN infrastructures, including remote international locations."
Pricing and Availability
Cisco WAN Access Performance Management System is now available for the Cisco 2600 Series, 3600 Series, and 3810 routers, which are based on Cisco IOS Software and manage ATM performance on Cisco T1, E1, T1 IMA and E1 IMA interfaces. Support for the Cisco 7200 ATM series and frame relay routers is scheduled to be available in early 2003. List price starts at $15,995 for an entry-level WAPMS server system and $2,500 for a T1 ATM license.
About Cisco Systems
Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO) is the worldwide leader in networking for the Internet. News and information are available at
www.cisco.com.
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Cisco, Cisco IOS, Cisco Systems, and the Cisco Systems logo are registered trademarks of Cisco Systems, Inc. and/or its affiliates in the U.S. and certain other countries. All other trademarks mentioned in this document are the property of their respective owners. The use of the word partner does not imply a partnership relationship between Cisco and any other company.
